How To Create a Marketing Plan That Works For Your Small Construction Business.
Creating a marketing plan for your small construction business is like using a map.
Just as a map helps you navigate unknown territory and reach your destination; a marketing plan helps guide your efforts and resources to get to where you want to be.
Business growth and success.
A map shows you the different routes you can take, and the different landmarks and points of interest along the way.
A construction marketing plan shows you the different strategies and tactics you can use, and the different milestones and objectives you need to reach.
A map also helps you plan the best route to take and avoid any obstacles, in the same way, a construction marketing plan helps you identify and overcome any potential challenges or roadblocks to your business growth.
A map also helps you track your progress and see how far you've come, and how much further you must go.
A marketing plan helps you track your progress and measure how effective your efforts are, so you can adjust when needed.
Just as a map is essential for a successful journey, a marketing plan is essential for a successful business growth.
Without it, you run the risk of getting lost, using guesswork, wasting time and money (energy and sanity!) in the wrong places.
And still not reaching your destination.
Just like trying to get somewhere new without a map (or a satnav).
It helps you navigate the unknown.
And have a clear understanding of your progress along the way.
So how do you create one?
Well, I’m glad you asked…
1. Work out your target market and their needs for your construction business.
Otherwise known as your IDEAL CLIENTS.
To drill deeper into Ideal Clients and how understanding yours can transform your construction marketing and business, then check this out.
If I could tell Trades & Construction Businesses one thing about Marketing.
(As a company we won’t work with any Trade or Construction company until we’ve run a whole workshop helping them work out exactly who that is).
Why?
Because we know uncovering and discovering all there is to know about your Ideal Client is the single most important thing you will ever do in your construction business.
The results tell you exactly where and how you need to show up in your marketing.
Saving time, money, energy and resources.
You ‘get there’ a whole lot quicker!
Do this before you do anything else.
2. Set clear and achievable marketing goals for your construction marketing.
Setting clear and achievable marketing goals for your construction company is important because it helps you focus your efforts and resources on specific, measurable outcomes.
This can make it more likely that you'll achieve the results you want.
And can also help you measure the effectiveness of your marketing efforts over time.
Some benefits of setting clear and achievable marketing goals are:
🟡 PRIORITISING EFFORTS
Setting goals allows you to prioritise your marketing efforts and to focus on the strategies that will be most effective in achieving those goals.
🟡 MEASURING PROGRESS
Clear and measurable goals make it easy to track progress and to identify areas where you need to make changes or adjustments.
🟡 IMPROVING ROI
By setting goals, you can identify and target your ideal customer and tailor your marketing efforts to reach them effectively, which can help you improve your return on investment (ROI).
🟡 ALLOWING FOR FLEXIBILITY
Setting goals allows you to adjust your marketing efforts as needed, based on your progress and the results you're seeing.
Something not working?
Being flexible enough to adapt and change it or remove completely.
🟡 BUILDING A SENSE OF ACCOUNTIBILITY
Setting goals creates a sense of accountability for you, your team and your construction company.
3. Work out your unique selling points and how to promote them effectively for your construction marketing.
Working out your unique selling points (USPs) when marketing your construction business can help you identify and communicate the specific benefits and value that you offer over your competitors.
This can make it more likely that potential customers will choose your business over others in the industry.
Winning.
Also, having well-defined USPs can help you create more effective marketing materials and campaigns, as you can tailor them to highlight the features and benefits that set your business apart.
Example.
You run a commercial electrical business.
And you're creating a proposal document for a restaurant (your Ideal Clients).
You'll want to highlight your unique selling points (USPs) to demonstrate why your business is the best choice for the restaurant's electrical needs.
Ways you might do this:
1. Highlight your experience and expertise in the restaurant industry.
If you have a lot of experience working on restaurant projects, mention this in the proposal and include details about the scope of the work you did, and the challenges you faced and how you resolved them.
2. Highlight your ability to provide custom solutions.
Mention that your team can design and implement customized electrical solutions to meet the specific needs of each restaurant.
3. Highlight your focus on energy efficiency.
If your company specializes in energy-efficient lighting and power solutions, mention this in the proposal and include details about how this can help the restaurant save money on their energy bills.
4. Highlight your commitment to timely completion.
Mention your company's ability to complete projects within the agreed timeline and budget.
5. Highlight your experience with industry standards and regulations.
Mention that your team is up to date with the latest codes and regulations for commercial kitchens and electrical systems and that you will ensure the restaurant complies.
By highlighting your USPs in this way, you'll be able to demonstrate to the restaurant that your business is the best choice for their electrical needs, and that you have the experience, expertise, and commitment to deliver quality work.
See how it works?
4. Think about what channels you are going to/not going to use for your construction marketing.
Plan what channels you are going to use to promote your construction marketing.
Email.
Facebook.
LinkedIn.
Networking (online).
Instagram.
Networking (offline).
❗️ IMPORTANT - AS A SMALL BUSINESS YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE ON/DOING EVERYTHING.
Ask yourself these questions:
❓ Where are my ideal clients spending their time?
❓ What channels are they using?
❓ How do they like to receive their information.
This will help you decide where/what you need to be doing.
⭐️ PRO TIP – Nail one at a time.
You’re better off showing up in the best way possible on one channel that showing up sometimes, in a diluted way, on many.
Less is more to start with.
5. Create a plan for content to establish your construction marketing as an industry leader.
Content is the backbone for your construction marketing.
What are you putting out there (offline and online) that positions you as an industry leader?
Don’t just wing it.
Plan for it.
Social media?
Why not post every Tuesday a tip about your industry that clients can take away to do themselves or warn them of something (that is a common mistake).
Networking?
If you are able to promote yourself at networking meetings, plan what you are going to say.
If it’s early spring and you’re a decorator, you might spend a number of weeks talking about the importance of professional external decorating over DIY and the risks involved by clients trying to do it themselves.
Perhaps you’ve filmed a testimonial video about said external decorating works.
Post it on your social media and website at the time of year you are going to start promoting that service in your business i.e. End of winter/early spring.
Think about all the content you create in your business on the daily and put a basic plan together about when and how you are going to use it to get the maximum impact.
6. Measure how effective your construction marketing efforts are.
Here’s some ways you can measure the effectiveness of your construction marketing efforts.
✅ How many leads you are generating.
✅ How many leads turn to paying clients.
✅ Return on Investment.
✅ Brand Awareness.
✅ Website Analytics – tools like Google Analytics.
✅ Customer Feedback.
It's important to track and measure your marketing efforts - so you can see what’s working and what’s not…
7. Continually adjust and refine your plan for your construction marketing.
So, the bad news.
You don’t just come up with a marketing plan for life.
That’s not how it works.
There are several reasons you need to review your construction marketing plan regularly.
Adapting to changes in the market.
The construction industry and client needs are constantly changing.
So, it’s important to review and update your construction marketing plan to ensure it is still relevant and effective.
Regularly reviewing your marketing plan can help you identify new opportunities for growth and expansion.
Reviewing your marketing plan allows you to evaluate what’s working and what’s not.
So, you can adjust the ideas that need some tweaking and get rid of those that are totally not working.
Reviewing and refining your marketing plan can help you stay competitive in the market by identifying and addressing new trends and changes in the industry.
Imagine if you didn’t update your marketing plan and missed out on all the new changes to your industry?
Your construction business would look and feel very dated and behind very quickly.
Budget.
By regularly reviewing your marketing plan, you can keep an eye on your return on investment of all the different tactics,.
This will help you make better, more informed decisions about what and how much to spend, where.
Reviewing your construction marketing plan can ensure that your marketing efforts align with your business goals and objectives - always.
8. Build a strong offline presence for your construction marketing.
Here’s a list of ideas on how to nail it offline.
👷🏾 NETWORKING
Attend industry events, local networking groups and conferences to meet potential clients and partners.
👷🏾 REFERRAL MARKETING
Encourage satisfied customers to refer their friends and family to your business.
👷🏾 BRANDING
Work on a strong brand identity, including a logo and strap line, and use it consistently across all your construction marketing materials.
Personal branding also plays a big part in the success of your construction business.
Take a peek at this.
Perfect Examples Of How Your Personal Brand On Social Media Is Ruining Your Construction Marketing.
👷🏾 VEHICLES
One of our most favourite marketing assets for a Trade and Construction business – your 24/7 advertising.
Designed right, your business can stand out on the road and get hundreds, if no thousands of eyeballs on your construction business.
Find out how to nail your construction vehicle graphic designs here:
5 Ways to Use your Trade and Construction Vehicles to get more clients.
👷🏾 PRINT
Use print marketing materials such as brochures, flyers, and business cards to promote your construction business to potential clients and partners.
👷🏾 SPONSORSHIPS
Sponsor local events or community organizations to increase brand awareness and build relationships with potential clients.
👷🏾 TRADE SHOWS
Participate in trade shows and exhibitions to showcase your services and products, and to network with potential clients and partners.
9. Build a strong online presence for your construction marketing.
This one needs not much introduction.
Here’s a list of ideas of how to build a strong online presence.
How many of these can you tick off?
🖥 DEVELOP A PROFESSIONAL WEBSITE
Your website is often the first point of contact for potential customers.
So it's essential to have a professional, well-designed site that is easy to navigate and provides all the information potential customers need.
And make sure it works perfectly on mobile!
🖥 OPTIMISE FOR SEARCH ENGINES
Ensure that your website is optimized for search engines by including relevant keywords, meta tags, and alt tags.
(If this sounds a bit techy get your web-designer to help you with this).
This will help potential customers find your construction website more easily when searching for construction-related services or products.
🖥 USE SOCIAL MEDIA
There’s no escaping it.
Create and maintain active social media accounts on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Use these platforms to share updates about all the happenings in your construction business and connect with potential customers and collaborators.
Fancy some ideas for post ideas on your social media pages?
Check this out.
Challenge: Go Live For 7 Days With These Ideas To Build Your Trade and Construction Marketing.
🖥 CREATE VALUABLE CONTENT
Start a blog, create videos, and take high quality images.
Use these to provide valuable information, share your expertise, and establish your business as an industry leader across the likes of your website and social media.
Take a peek at one of our favourites.
The Ultimate Trades Testimonial Video of All Time for some ideas on how to nail your construction testimonial videos.
🖥 GET LISTED
Make sure your business is listed in online directories such as Google My Business, Yelp, and Yellow Pages.
This will make it easy for potential customers to find your business and contact you.
🖥 ENGAGE WITH YOUR AUDIENCE
Engage with your audience by responding to comments and messages in a timely manner.
This will help build trust and establish a positive reputation for your business.
If we can see that you get back to people’s comments on the likes of social media in a short space of time it gives us hope that you will get back to our enquiries and send us our quotes quickly too!
🖥 MONITOR & MEASURE YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE
Regularly monitor your online presence by tracking website traffic, social media engagement, and search engine rankings. Use this information to adjust and optimise your online presence.
🖥 KEEP YOUR WEBSITE & SOCIAL MEDIA UPDATED
Regularly update your website and social media accounts to ensure that the information is accurate, current, and relevant.
If you don’t you could be showing us incorrect info, that you’re not the ‘go-to’ construction company we need or we might think you’re no longer in business.
Imagine.
We visit your Facebook page and the last time you posted was 3 and half year ago.
What might we think?
Keep your online presence up to date.
By following these steps, you can build a strong online presence for your construction business that will help attract potential customers, establish your business as an industry leader, and drive sales.
Good stuff.
10. Stay up to date with industry trends and adapt your marketing plan for your construction business.
Staying up to date with industry trends is important for your construction marketing plan for several reasons.
💪🏽 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
Knowing the latest industry trends can help you identify new opportunities and stay ahead of your competitors.
Being aware of the latest developments in your industry can help you develop a more effective marketing strategy and stand out from the competition.
E.g. You run a decorating business and are one of the first to adopt the spray-painting technique for UPVC windows and doors – saving clients THOUSANDS by not having to spend with glazing companies to replace windows and doors for a new look.
If you’re one of the first (doing it right and marketing yourself correctly) you stand a good chance of being the front runner because you were ahead of the curve.
💪🏽 RELEVANCE TO YOUR IDEAL CLIENT
Keeping up with industry trends can help you understand your target market better and tailor your marketing efforts to suit them.
Understanding the latest developments in your industry can help you create content and campaigns that are more relevant and engaging to your ideal clients.
On trend social media posts being one of them.
💪🏽 INNOVATION
Industry trends can also give you ideas for new products, services or technology that can be used in your construction business.
This can help you to differentiate yourself from your competition and improve your overall performance.
Winning!
💪🏽 COST-EFFECTIVENESS
Staying up to date with industry trends can also help you optimize your marketing budget.
By understanding the latest developments in your industry, you can identify the most effective and cost-efficient marketing channels and tactics to use.
💪🏽 LEGAL COMPLIANCE
Industry trends can also help you stay compliant with laws and regulations that apply to your business, and that can change frequently.
Overall, staying up to date with industry trends can help you create a more effective and relevant marketing plan that gives you a competitive advantage, helps you to innovate and improve, and keeps your business compliant.
11. Develop a budget for your construction marketing.
How do I work that out, I hear you say.
This is what the guys over at entrepreneur.com tell us:
New companies: For companies that have been in business for one to five years, we suggest using 12 to 20 percent of your gross revenue or projected revenue on marketing. (Companies less than a year old, tend to need to ramp up before spending marketing dollars.)
Established companies: For those companies that have been in business more than five years and have some market share/brand equity, we suggest allocating between 6 and 12 percent of your gross revenue or projected revenue.
Which makes sense.
If you are new to the Trade, nobody knows who you are yet.
So you need to put in a fair bit more graft to tap into that market share.
Right?
Once you’re more established and people are more conscious of you as a business, that number falls.
Determining the marketing budget for your construction business will depend on a variety of factors, including your business size, industry, target market, and marketing goals.
It's important to keep in mind that your marketing budget will change over time as the business grows, the market changes and you reach your goals.
But hopefully this is a good starting place.
⬇️ How To Create a Marketing Plan That Works For Your Small Construction Business Rundown:
1. Work out your target market and understand their needs.
2. Set clear and achievable marketing goals.
3. Identify your unique selling points and how to promote them.
4. Think about what channels you are/are not going to use.
5. Establish to how establish yourself as an industry leader.
6. Measure how effective your marketing efforts are.
7. Continuously adjust and refine your plan.
8. Build a strong offline presence.
9. Build a strong online presence for your construction marketing.
10. Stay up to date on industry trends.
11. Develop a budget for your construction brand and marketing.
🛠 Need a little more help nailing your Trades and Construction Marketing?
Course you do.
First. Let’s work out where you are with all things Marketing.
Got 3 minutes?
Take our Trades Quiz to discover how you score with all things ‘Off The Tools’.
We have heaps of tips, tricks, and hacks for your Trade and Construction business in our cheat sheets, videos and ideas waiting for you on the other side… i.e., your results page.
So, you can improve your score. And NAIL your Trade and Construction business.
Nice.